COVER N. 320 - FRANCE

Postmark: Bicentenaire du Rugby à XV  - !er Jour - 69 Lyon - 06.09.2023

Posted on the 6th September; received on the 24th September 2023

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France hosted the 10th Rugby World Cup which has come to an end last Saturday with South-Africa's Springboks once again showing that it takes more than a great haka to win a game, after beating New Zealand's All Blacks, although for the least marginal differece: 12-11.

Now I know as much about rugby's or football's history as I know about the The Effect of Gamma Rays on Man-in-the-Moon Marigolds, so I, as usual, perused the most readily available reference these days - Wikipedia - and read the Portuguese article on the subject which states  that the founding event for Rugby, dating back to 1823 is but a myth.

According to it, a certain William Webb Wellis, who was a student at Rugby School, Warwickshire, while engaged in a football match, decided to take the ball in his hands and run to the goal line, thus setting the habit for all the well nurtured bodies we now try to see replicating it...

Intrigued by this, I also checked one of the several English language entries which do not even mention this story and clearly states that "Rugby football started at Rugby School in Rugby, Warwickshire, England, where the rules were first codified in 1845".

Anyway, what seems to be certain is that Rugby started in Rugby and that football and rugby are close relatives.

Back to the World Cup and to the nice FDC which is now in my collection thanks to Eric, a qui je remercie.

The 10th Rugby World Cup took place in France from the 8th September to the 28th October 23 and although the stamp on the cover makes no mention to it, I suppose La Poste issuing it cannot be dissociated from this fact, which, coincidentally, occurred in the same year that Rugby Union is celebrating its 200th anniversary , if we abide by the founding myth I referred to above.

So, on the first day of the tournament 08SEP2023, La Poste issued the single 1,80€ stamp celebrating the 200 years of Rugby Union, in its most common version, which is played by teams of 15 players (there is also a seven players version), which can be seen on the cover, postmarked with the First day of issue mark, issued at the city of Lyon.